


Help

by LinTheMermaid



Category: Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, One Shot, Sleep Deprivation, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:35:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25457881
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinTheMermaid/pseuds/LinTheMermaid
Summary: Basically the scene in Halt's Peril where Will meets Malcolm after having ridden all that way with no sleep (because I was mad that it was not included in the book).
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	Help

**Author's Note:**

> So this is my first work on this site, apologies if it's not the greatest. This story was something that was going around in my head for a long time, but I was too lazy to actually write it down. Also, I don't have the Ranger's Apprentice book Halt's Peril with me, so if small details are incongruent to the story (like it being daytime in my fic whereas it was night in the book) please ignore them. Thanks, and I hope you enjoy :)

Will could feel Tug beginning to slow with fatigue as he cantered through the forest on his way to Malcolm.

"Come on," he urged his horse onward. "We can't stop now, we're almost there. Halt needs us!" Tug grunted softly and began to pick up speed once more. Abelard and Kicker followed, both almost as sore as Tug was - Will had been switching between Tug and Abelard, but Kicker had his armor as well.

Even though he had just been urging his horse onward, Will couldn't help but feel Tug's pain. He wanted nothing more than to stop and rest - his eyelids were drooping and he felt his head beginning to dip towards his chest with every motion of the horse. However, Will knew that he couldn't stop yet. He had to get to Malcolm as quickly as possible, so that Malcolm could help Halt. There wasn't much time left.

As they continued the trek through the forest, Will slowly began to realize that he wasn't sure where he was. He had only traversed this path a handful of times before, and it was dark now. All of the traps that Malcolm had laid to scare passersby were nowhere in sight - nothing was going to aid Will in his search. Knowing that time was of the essence, Will racked his brain for any way to locate Malcolm quickly. Then it came to him - Shadow! He whistled once, twice, three times, to no avail. He was just thinking he might have to wait until morning when he heard a distant bark. Hurriedly, he set Tug into his canter once more, searching for the dog he had once owned.

Once Shadow was located, she immediately turned tail and ran into the forest. Will and his horse entourage followed with haste, knowing that she would lead them to Malcolm. After what seemed like hours, but was probably only a few minutes, Will began to recognize his surroundings. The rising sun was sending light through the trees now, and that helped Will to recognize the path to Malcolm's huts. He began to urge Tug even faster, with their destination so close.

They arrived at the clearing just as Malcolm's villagers were beginning to emerge from their homes.

"Has anyone seen Malcolm?" Will's voice cracked, fraught with fear and anticipation. He was so close! Then Malcolm emerged from his hut, a shocked expression on his face.

"Will! What are you doing here?"

Will was so frantic, he fell out of his saddle trying to dismount.

"Woah, Will, are you alright?" Malcolm helped him up, concern filling his voice.

"I'm fine," Will panted. "But please, Malcolm, you have to come with me."

"Will, what's going on?"

"It's Halt. He's my mentor. Well, my former mentor. You don't know him, but he taught me everything I know and ..." Will's voice broke. He started again, words rushing out. "He's hurt. He's dying. He's been poisoned by the Genovesans, and it's bad. I know you don't know him, and it's a long journey, but I promised his wife I would protect him and - " Will broke off again. "I can't bear to see him die, Malcolm. I'm not ready. I can't ..."

"Of course I will go with you," Malcolm said firmly. "It's not even a question. Let me just go and pack some things."

Will sighed with relief, then began to sway on the spot. Going three nights with only a half-hour of sleep each night was bad enough, but now that the adrenaline of not knowing whether Malcolm would agree was beginning to fade, Will was finding it difficult to stay upright. He decided to lean against a nearby tree for stability, then slowly felt himself slipping down the tree, until he was collapsed at its base.

 _No,_ Will thought. _I have to get up and help Malcolm. Halt needs me._ He tried to struggle to his feet, but his exhausted body wouldn't move.

***

Malcolm hurried into his hut to gather supplies for a long journey, as well as the correct medicines for Halt. He decided to start with the medicines, as that was the more pressing concern. However, he could not do so without some idea what kind of poison was used.

"Will," he called from inside the hut. "What exactly was Halt poisoned with?"

No answer.

"Will?"

When there was still no reply, Malcolm stuck his head out of the door to his hut to locate Will. He found the Ranger passed out with his back against a tree. Malcolm smiled at the sight and decided to let Will sleep for a little while longer. The boy had obviously ridden here without adequate sleep, and although Malcolm knew that the situation was urgent, he decided he could let Will sleep while he was packing for the trip. However, as he watched Will, he could tell that the Ranger was uncomfortable. The tree bark was probably doing no wonders for his back.

"Trobar!" Malcolm called, careful to keep his voice down so that Will would not be disturbed.

The giant wandered into view.

"Could you take Will to one of the huts to rest?"

Trobar nodded and began to move toward Will.

"Make sure not to wake him," Malcolm added.

Trobar nodded once again and gently lifted Will from the ground, cradling him in his large arms. He set off toward his own hut. Malcolm smiled, knowing that Will would be more comfortable there. Then he turned back toward his preparations. Although he still did not know what Halt was poisoned with, he knew enough about Genovesans to make an educated guess about which poisons were most likely used. Once those preparations were complete, he began to pack clothes and rations. He had a feeling this was going to be a long trip.

***

When Will awoke, he did not know where he was. The walls were unfamiliar, as was the bed. He registered these facts just as he realized that he was being shaken by Malcolm.

"I'm sorry, Will, I would have loved to let you sleep longer, but I have everything I need, and time is of the essence, correct?"

Will's heart skipped a beat. "Yes, we have to go now! How long was I out?" His mind kicked into overdrive, contemplating the hours he may have been asleep and how much worse Halt could have gotten in that time.

"Just an hour," Malcolm said sadly. "It's not nearly enough, but it will have to do for now."

Will sighed in relief. Only an hour. It still wasn't great, but at least he hadn't wasted too much time. He rose and followed Malcolm out of the hut, noticing as he did so that the room was still swaying a little. It seemed that an hour's sleep was not enough to make up for the days he had gone without.

"I packed you some rations, and I've refilled your animal skin canteen with fresh coffee," said Malcolm, handing it to Will as he spoke.

Will took a grateful sip and felt a tiny bit of energy refill his limbs. "Thanks Malcolm."

"Of course. So, which horse will I be riding?" Malcolm sized up the two Ranger horses.

Will indicated Kicker.

Malcolm turned to stare incredulously at Will. "You expect me to ride _that?_ I doubt I could even mount it!"

Will looked at the tall battlehorse, then turned back to the short, old healer, and had to agree. If they had time, Will thought he could help Malcolm to mount Kicker, but that was time they simply didn't have.

"Good point. We can use him as a packhorse, then," Will suggested. Malcolm agreed, and once Kicker was loaded up, Malcolm moved to mount Abelard. Will's brain was moving sluggishly, and it wasn't until Malcolm had a foot in the stirrup and was about to swing himself astride that Will realized what was about to happen.

"Wait!" he exclaimed. "Malcolm, don't do that yet! You need to give him the password first, or he'll throw you."

Malcolm raised an eyebrow and regarded Abelard. "Really? He doesn't seem violent."

"It's a Ranger horse thing," Will explained wearily. "It's something they're trained to do, to prevent theft."

Malcolm's eyes lit up. "How interesting!" Will could tell that the scientist in him was yearning to know more, but Malcolm restrained himself. "So what is the password?"

"It's _Permettez moi_. You have to whisper it in his ear."

Once Malcolm had done so, Will gave him the ok to mount Abelard. He then mounted Tug, groaning inwardly as he did so. It seemed that the hour of sleep had not been enough to soothe his sore leg muscles. Nevertheless, Will pushed Tug into a trot, allowing Malcolm to follow, then urged his horse to the canter that was known for its ability to cover ground. He kept an eye on Malcolm, and while it was obvious that the healer was no expert rider, he seemed to be able to remain seated in the saddle. That was more than could be said for most Skandians, Will thought, and he had to press a fist to his mouth to stifle the giggles that were bursting to come forth. He was slaphappy from lack of sleep.

After a few hours of hard riding, Will was starting to wish once again that they could take a break. He ignored these feelings and continued on, determined not to stop unless Malcolm needed to. He could ignore his own needs, but he didn't want to make Malcolm suffer.

Malcolm, however, could tell that Will was hurting more than he was letting on. He was a trained physician, after all, and he knew when people were holding in pain. "Maybe we should stop for a bit," Malcolm suggested. "You look like you could use a rest."

"No." Will gritted his teeth. "I'm fine, Malcolm. Halt's the one who needs help. I can make it."

"But you're no use to me if you keel over on the way there," Malcolm pointed out. "I don't know the way."

"I can make it," Will repeated determinedly. Malcolm sighed, but did not push the matter.

An hour later, Will began to sway in the saddle. He tried to steady himself, but Malcolm noticed.

"Will, you need rest!"

"Malcolm, I'm fine."

"Will, Halt wouldn't want you to do this to yourself!"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me, worry about Halt. If we don't make it there in time..." Will trailed off, not wanting to finish that train of thought.

"I understand," Malcolm responded, "but you have to take care of yourself between now and when we arrive, because if you collapse before we make it, we'll never find them, and Halt will die."

Will quickly looked away. Malcolm pretended not to notice the tears slowly sliding down Will's face.

"I'll be fine," Will said quietly. "Let's keep going."

By nightfall, Will looked horrible, and Malcolm decided the time had come for drastic measures. Will had to get some rest or he wasn't going to last much longer, and they still had a two-day journey ahead of them.

"Will, I'm getting tired," Malcolm began. "And sore. Could we camp for the night?"

Will hesitated, but ultimately decided that Malcolm's wellbeing had to come first if Halt was to get proper treatment. "Sure, Malcolm. Let's make camp."

Will and Malcolm dismounted, and Will immediately set about setting up the campsite. Malcolm made a show of moving slowly, as if he had riding cramps (which he had). The more Will tired himself out now, the more likely he would actually sleep for longer than an hour or two. Malcolm knew that if Will woke for whatever reason, he would refuse to go back to sleep.

"I'll take first watch," Will offered once the campsite was set up. "You get some rest."

"Ok," Malcolm agreed, knowing there was no point in arguing.

When Will took his place at the edge of the campsite, Malcolm got into his sleep sack but kept his eyes open and his mind alert. After half an hour or so, Malcolm raised his head slightly in order to get a look at Will. From what he could tell, Will was struggling to keep his head upright.

After another half an hour, when Malcolm peeked at Will's frame, it was completely slumped over. He had finally fallen asleep. As quietly as he could, Malcolm extricated himself from the sleep sack and made his way over to Will. Knowing that it would be much harder for him than it had been for Trobar, Malcolm attempted to lift Will without waking him. Much to Malcolm's surprise, he found that Will's body was quite light, considering his size.

 _He must not be eating_ , Malcolm thought to himself. _Well, one problem at a time._

Malcolm carried Will to his sleep sack and placed him on top of it, using it as a mattress. He would wake Will in a few hours, Malcolm decided, so that Malcolm himself could get some sleep, but for now, Will was finally getting some much-deserved and long-overdue rest.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed my first attempt at a whump oneshot. Please comment and let me know what you thought.


End file.
